May Angels Lead You In
by DoingTheUnstuck
Summary: Her light was dimming, he could see it. Her once vibrant eyes lacked the glow they once had and she was pulling back. Something was definitely wrong, he just knew it.


Hey guys, I'm here with a new oneshot. Just a quick warning, it has some darker themes. I know the whole abusive relationship thing has been done a lot, but I feel like most of it focuses on the physical type. While it is a very serious type of abuse, it is not the only type of abuse. I kind of wanted to bring light onto verbal abuse and how much it can affect a person.

-Millie

* * *

_Memories, where'd you go? You're all I've ever known_

Something's wrong. Really wrong.

And it's not like he didn't see it coming. It's just that this _thing, _whatever it was, crept up like an unexpected thunderstorm.

Something began to take over her, and he had no idea what was happening. He just knew it was bad and she wasn't the same as before. He didn't think she'd ever be the same.

He wants to blame it on that stupid guy who came out of the dark cloud of her past into the bright hope of her future.

But of course, that future is looking awfully bleak now.

* * *

_Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry, you don't know how lovely you are_

It started out slow, as these things always do. One day, Ally got a surprise visit from a boy whom she knew in elementary school. Apparently, they had been quite close until he moved away in the fourth grade.

Ally was pleasantly shocked when she saw Jake pop in Sonic Boom and announce his return to Miami. They shared a tight hug and he was introduced to Austin and Dez, reuniting with Trish as well.

They decided to give Ally and Jake some time to catch up. Soon, one day turned into a couple of days turned into a week and Ally couldn't have been happier to have her old pal back.

* * *

_I'm holding a heart_

Austin and Jake immediately hit it off and became fast friends. Even Dez seemed to be taking well to the boy. They clicked quickly, taking trips to the arcade and having guy time when Ally and Trish had a girls' day.

Of course, Austin began to notice Jake taking a liking to Ally that went past friendship. He also noticed the way Ally reacted to Jake's flirting positively.

He smiled to himself, happy that things were going well for Ally. After she got over her stage fright, it seemed that she was becoming more upbeat and outgoing though she still stayed true to herself and retained that glow she always had about her.

* * *

_Here's my heart in a postcard, darling, just one step from the edge_

At first, things in Ally's new relationship were going great. They had been going strong for almost a month now, and Jake was a complete sweetheart to her.

He took her on romantic dates, paid attention to her, all while respecting the bond she had with her friends. He supported her music career and understood much of her time had to be divided between focusing on her own music and Austin's.

But, as time moved forward, the brunette began to notice some of Jake's little quips. She took note of how he would take subtle digs toward her, like commenting on the amount of food she was eating or making a joke of how she liked to keep her things neat and orderly almost to a 'psychotic level.'

Ally took this all in stride, laughing it off or just ignoring it. But recently, she's found herself staying silent and waiting until she hit her pillow to cry her eyes out.

* * *

_All I have is all of me and it's all that I can give_

During the course of Ally and Jake's relationship, Austin saw her pulling back slightly. In the beginning, he just thought she was in a new relationship and needed some space for the honeymoon phase.

But over time, he began to see her forced smiles and laughs. He saw the despondent look in her usually glowing eyes. He saw her light slowly start to dim and fade away. She was cracking and he had no idea why.

All of a sudden, she was more withdrawn into herself than when they first started working together. She was writing less and less in her book and barely touched the piano. She wouldn't even read the book he had bought her for her birthday.

All she did nowadays was sleep, eat, work, watch TV, repeat. It was like she was functioning but not functioning, if that made sense. She woulddo the things that were necessary to live but not anything more. She felt like a robot, operating on autopilot. She really didn't think anyone noticed the change in her, hell she barely did at first.

But she shouldn't have underestimated the watchful eyes of her best friend.

* * *

_But I'll be okay, is that what you want me to say?_

The brunette songwriter sighed as she pushed open the doors to Sonic Boom and made her way to the practice room. Austin had wanted to get started on a new song right away. The only thing was that she was so exhausted. Lately, she felt like she couldn't catch a break.

She would either sleep too much or not sleep at all. There was no in-between. Things had gotten worse between her and Jake. He now yelled at her, screaming about how she didn't pay attention to him and how she didn't care about him. Of course, he wouldn't forget to list all of her faults for her to hear.

She found it was just easier to sit there and take it instead of reciprocating the 'conversation.'

Opening the practice room door, she wasn't surprised to see Austin there. He stopped playing on the piano and turned his head to look at hear and smiled. "Hey Als."

Ally gave a smile that she hoped didn't look too broken. "Hey Aus, let's get started." She walked over to the piano bench and sat next to him, rummaging through her bag for her book.

Austin watched her, noting the tiredness in her actions. He frowned worriedly, crinkling his forehead. "Hey…Ally…are you okay? You seem kinda down lately."

The girl in question closed her eyes and tried to fight the tears. "Yeah, I'm fine." She said, not sounding as sincere as she thought. Austin furrowed his brow and turned her around to face him. She wouldn't look him in the eyes.

"Ally, look at me and tell me the truth. What's going on? You don't seem yourself recently and I know something's wrong…please tell me. I want to help." Ally shook her head, still not returning his glance.

"Is he..is he hitting you?" Austin asked quietly. Ally's eyes widened and she shook her head furiously. "No, Austin, I promise it's nothing like that at all. We've just been…fighting a bit. That's all. I'm just sorta stressed out. I…I gotta go. We'll work on this later."

Austin narrowed his eyes, obviously not believing her. He couldn't say anything else though, because she abruptly got up and left the practice room.

* * *

_Lights will guide you home and ignite your bones and I will try to fix you_

He found her a week later, holed up in her bedroom with tears running down her face. She wasn't at school today and thought she was sick, so he decided to check up on her and cheer her up a little.

What he actually found, instead of a fever-ridden best friend, was a girl who looked broken beyond repair. Immediately, Austin dropped his things and ran over to her, grasping her face in his hands and checking for any injury.

"Ally, what did he do to you? Are you hurt? What happened?" He asked lowly, knowing full well who caused her to shatter.

The petite girl just bit her lip and shook her head, taking a shaky breath in. "He didn't do anything to me. And no I'm not hurt, I'm fine." Austin didn't buy this and refused to drop the subject.

"Ally, look at me and tell me what's wrong. You need to tell me." He demanded. Ally let out a loud shout, obviously broken down and just tired of life. More tears streamed down her face as she screamed, "You can't help me! So stop trying. You can't save me. I'm not a damsel in distress and you're not a superhero. You wanna know what's wrong? Fine. Jake has never hit me. Not once. All he does is point out how horrible I am. He tells me I'm worthless, and it's true! I don't do anything right and I'm incredibly flawed and stupid and…and.."

"For one morning, I just want to not hate myself when I wake up." The brunette said, quietly.

Her blonde companion looked shocked and didn't know what to do. At that moment, he realized he really couldn't help her. What she was going through was something he would never understand. He couldn't fix her and he couldn't even begin to imagine what she feels right now. What he does know is that all he can do is be there for her and support her when she needs it.

He took his own shaky breath and said, "Okay, Ally, okay. We'll figure this out..together. I'm here for you. I love you. Don't ever forget that."

* * *

_Oh can you tell I haven't slept very well since the last time that we spoke? You said, "Please understand if I see you again, don't even say hello. Please."_

He helped her tell her family and Dez and Trish. He held her through her shaky, tear-filled confession and held her after in the unsure, stony silence.

He held her when they decided she did need to get help, real help, from someone who could understand her now burdened heart.

He hugged her tight before she got into the car and her parents drove her away to that scary hospital. He didn't want to let go, but knew she needed to leave for as long as necessary for her recovery. That was all he cared about, really.

Seeing her small nod and smile before the car pulled away gave him all the reassurance that he needed to let her go so she might come back to him whole again.

_The best way to make it through with hearts and wrists intact is to realize two out of three ain't bad, ain't bad..._

* * *

Thanks for reading, everyone. This was a tough one for me to write because it's kinda personal but I wanted to get it out there. If you or anyone you know is suffering from abuse (either verbal, physical, or sexual) I urge you to get help or call this number: **1−800−799−SAFE(7233) **Also, if you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts please, please get help immediately by calling 911, telling someone, or calling: **1-800-273-8255 **or even going online to . Believe me, I know it's hard to confess what you're going through and get help but just know that you are worth saving and your life is precious.


End file.
